What Happened To Us
by Tiarwen
Summary: Their relationship has been on the rocks, and neither knows why. This is the story of their struggle to find it within themselves and each other to make it work again. DracoPansy [Complete]


Disclaimer - characters are JKR's, song lyrics are Hoobastank's, plot is mine.

For my Starsies - thank you for listening to me ramble and rant and rave. You're an amazing person and an even great friend. I love you baby.

**What Happened To Us**

Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson were the perfect Slytherin couple. Draco, with his ice blue-gray eyes, pale blonde hair and who stood six feet tall, was the picture of an Ice King. Pansy, in contrast, stood barely 5' 4", with dark green eyes and wavy black hair that fell just past her shoulders. They were cold, untouchable, and, though it was hard to believe, they were in love. To all of Slytherin house, and, indeed, the entire school, their relationship was as solid as a rock. But they knew better.

**I thought it was too good to be true  
I found somebody who understands me  
someone who would help me to get through  
and fill an emptiness I had inside me  
but you kept inside and I just denied  
some things that we should have both said  
I knew it was too good to be true  
cause I'm the only one who understands me**

Draco sat in the Slytherin common room long after the rest of his housemates had left for bed. He was thinking about his relationship with Pansy. They had been having a hard time lately, not that anyone except the two of them knew about it. It annoyed Draco - they had been so good for each other, and they hadn't had these petty little problems before. With a sigh he remembered when they first began dating. She had stood by him through every problem, he loved her for everything she was (not that he would divulge that to **_anyone_**) and she had understood him.

There were a few holes in their relationship, he could admit that. She hadn't opened up to him, not even close to how much of himself he had showed her. And as much as it annoyed him to acknowledge it, he could have done better as well. She would ask him questions, some of which he didn't want to answer. And so he had lied, especially when it came to his future. He had no idea what he wanted from life.

He massaged his temples with his fingertips, his blonde hair falling into his eyes. He should have known. He was foolish to think that they were perfect. Nothing was perfect - not even him.

**what happened to us  
we used to be so perfect, now we're lost and lonely  
what happened to us  
and deep inside I wonder did I lose my only  
**

Pansy lay on her back, staring at the curtains that hung around her bed. She was mad. This stupid drama with Draco was distracting her. Something had happened between them. She had changed and he had changed and their relationship had changed. But not in a good way. They had been so good for each other. And now… it was like they were no longer dating. But those fatal words hadn't been muttered and their relationship seemed fine to the rest of the world. It wasn't official, but it hurt like hell, because she knew that it was as good as over.

She kept asking herself, _'What happened?' _The question repeated itself over and over in her mind like a broken player. And in the darkest part of the night, when silence reigned, she wondered, in the deepest part of her heart, if Draco had been that proverbial 'one,' her 'soul mate', her 'other half' or all those other nonsense ideas that no one else knew she even had, and she wondered if she had lost that _one_.

○○○○○○○○○

It was a Wednesday afternoon, and, as was usual, Draco and Pansy were walking to class, his arm draped around her shoulders. She laughed when he made jokes; he protected her from the 'Dream Team' when they made rude comments about her. It was during Potions one after noon, when Pansy was working with Millicent and Draco with Blaise that Draco noticed Professor Snape examining his and Pansy's interactions.

**remember they thought we were too young  
to really know what it takes to make it  
but we had survived off what we have done  
till we could show them all that they're mistaken  
**

When Draco and Pansy had first began dating, it had drawn scrutiny from multiple parties, and more than once Draco had heard adults discussing how the two of them were too young to really understand and have such a deep relationship. He and Pansy had been determined to prove them wrong, to show that they were mistaken and that the two knew what love was.

The fact that the Potions Master was watching them in a way that suggested that he knew about their rift only served to annoy Draco even more, and as soon as the class ended Draco pulled Pansy to him and covered her mouth with his, just to spite the man who seemed to be expecting the end of their relationship. When they broke apart, Draco glanced over and found Snape glaring at them, and smirked at the man before placing an arm around Pansy's shoulders to lead her away from the classroom.

**who would have known the lies that would grow  
until we could see right through them  
remember they knew we were too young  
we still don't know what it takes to make it**

Pansy also noticed that Snape was taking an interest in her and Draco's relationship, and was perturbed by it as well. So when he had decided to give the professor a show to prove that all was (supposedly) well, she couldn't really complain.

But perhaps what really bothered her was the fact that all of those people had been right - she and Draco didn't understand what it would take to make their relationship work, which was why they were having problems at the current time. They didn't know then, and they didn't know any better now.

While she and Draco had never _lied_ to one another per se, they had both on occasion, and more recently, quite often, failed to tell the entire truth or leave out important details when telling a story or informing the other where they would be. And it had become so obvious that these non-lies were completely transparent, which may have been the real beginning of the problem.

**what happened to us  
we used to be so perfect, now we're lost and lonely  
what happened to us  
and deep inside I wonder did I lose my only one  
**

Draco and Pansy walked down to the Great Hall for dinner the same as always - Pansy on Draco's right, Crabbe and Goyle two steps behind them. As the sat and ate, they didn't realize that they were having identical thoughts.

Both were wondering, once again, where their problems had come from and what had happened, really. They felt so lost without each other - even before they had started dating in their third year, three years before, they had been together, as close friends. Although they couldn't claim the spot of best friend - those belonged to Blaise and Millicent (or Milla, as Pansy called her) - they had always been there for each other.

In their minds, they had each toyed with the idea that the other had cheated on them, but then thrown it away. Pansy thought it was disgraceful, Draco believed it was stupid. Both knew what the other thought about the subject, which was what led to their dismissal of the suggestion.

And as they returned to the dungeons, Draco's arm around Pansy's shoulders once more, both felt a stab in their hearts as they wondered about that _one_…

**we could have made it work, we could have found a way,  
should have done our best to see another day  
but we kept it all inside until it was too late  
and now we're both alone the consequence we pay  
for throwing it all away, for throwing it all away**

It was late on the same Wednesday night, and in the girl's dormitory, one bed was closed off with a silencing charm around the curtains. Inside, Pansy was doing something she hadn't done since she was six - she was crying.

For months, her problems with Draco had only been adding to the stress she felt from school and her friends and her parents. School work was, as always, looming over everything. Her friends, if one could call them that, came to her constantly with their problems, asking for her advice or the like. And then her parents… her parents were constantly reminding her to be "aware of her status" and to "set a pureblood example." She scoffed aloud at the last part. She and Draco agreed on one thing their parents would frown on - they could see no difference between purebloods, halfbloods and muggleborns.

The thought of Draco brought more tears to her eyes. She kept thinking about all the things they could have done differently to make everything work out. They should have worked harder to be sure that they would stay together. But they both were the way they were and didn't realize the faults that had caused these problems until it was too late, and because of it, they were at this point. Pansy had never felt quite as alone as she did then. She felt as though she and Draco had thrown away the best thing that either of them had ever had.

**what happened to us  
we used to be so perfect, now we're lost and lonely  
what happened to us  
and deep inside I wonder did I lose my only**

At the same time that Pansy was crying in her room, Draco was sitting in the common room in front of the fire - his favorite place to think, so long as there was no one else around. He lounged back in an armchair, staring at the dying embers. It seemed as though his mind was on repeat, for there was only one question circling around his brain - _what happened?_ Before all of their problems, he and Pansy had been so amazing, so perfect for each other. Their personalities complimented each other, and Draco never got tired of talking to her.

Though he was surrounded by others, without her, he felt for more alone. And though it was incredibly hard for him to admit it to himself, he felt some what lost without her. Draco couldn't imagine a life where Pansy wasn't included. It just didn't make sense to him.

And very deep inside himself, he questioned if she really was that 'one' people talk about. The 'other half' and 'soul mate' and all those things - Pansy was the only person he could put in that place. He couldn't (and wouldn't) even try to put any one else in that spot. And if he had lost her… he may have made the biggest mistake of his life.

**what happened to us  
what happened to us  
what happened to us  
what happened to us**

It was the night of Dumbledore's Yule Ball, which he had decided to hold every year, not only when the tournament was occurring. As was expected, Draco and Pansy had come together, danced together, eaten together. At one point though, Draco had turned to speak with Blaise and when he turned back around, he found that Pansy had gone off. Concerned, he began to look for her. When, after ten minutes of searching and coming up empty, he stalked out into the gardens, frustrated.

Pansy was standing on one of the stone patios outside the Great Hall, leaning on one of the fences, staring at the stars. Draco stood there for a moment, simply looking at her. And it was then that he decided that no matter what, he was not going to let this fall apart.

Pansy felt eyes on her, and slowly turned around to find herself face-to-face with Draco. She attempted to give him a smile and failed. He took two steps forward so that he was right in front of her and she had to look up to see his face.

"What happened, Pansy?"

"What happened, Draco?"

The questions, spoken at the exact same time, hung in the air between them. They stared into each other's eyes, a reflection of their own thoughts and feelings.

No words were passed between them, but they knew. They knew that whatever had happened wasn't going to stand in their way. And more importantly, then knew that they had found their _one_.


End file.
